When we left Dawson City we had no idea how far we would ride that day. Late in the day, we stopped outside Whitehorse to fuel up. We were, more or less, thinking about Teslin as the place to stop overnight. While we were gassing up, however, one of us, I think it was Bluestreek, said something along the lines of “What about Skagway?”
Skagway, or Skaguay as it is sometimes spelled, is now mostly a stop for cruise ships and it would be a detour of 150 miles or so to ride the spur road down and back. It was already late afternoon but the day was clear and we decided to head for Skagway and spend the night of the 4th of July there. It proved to be a good decision, not because anything was happening on the 4th in Skagway (we just missed the parade and the fireworks display had been put on the previous evening), but because the road into the town is simply delightful.
The road cuts though mountain with interesting granite formations, lakes and forests. The last part drops sharply to the coast. Think of a cross between California’s Tioga Pass Road and Highway 36.
Unfortunately, none of the photos I tried to shoot from the moving bike came out so you will just have to go ride that road yourself. . . . And I will have to return to take some pictures.
This is the border crossing going into Skagway (international crossing number nine - of a total of ten - for us this trip counting the four at Stewart, BC / Hyder, AK).
We checked into the local Westmark Inn (the third time we has stayed at a Westmark on this trip) and headed for dinner. The town of Skagway is pleasant place to walk around.
The next morning we headed back up that gorgeous road and ran mostly east. We decided to continue past Watson Lake and ended up stopping at an isolated lodge in Munchos Lake. Along the way we saw lots of wildlife including dozens of bison
Fortunately, there was room at the inn. As there was no other place to eat, we headed for the dining room and ordered our food. I got up to look at a very large carved, wooden map of the area that took up most of one of the dining room’s walls. As I walked over, I passed a table where a couple sat. The woman was wearing an IBA T-shirt and the guy at the table looked familiar. Turns out that the couple was Bill Watt and Susan Murphy. We joined them for dinner and swapped stories about the Dalton and other places. A most pleasant evening.
Oddly, two days later, south of Prince George, I ran into Bill and Susan at a gas station. I hope that they had a good ride home to Vancouver.
